Swallowing & Communication Collaborative

Research in the Swallowing & Communication Collaborative is centered around optimizing the management of swallowing and speech impairments to improve quality of life for adults living with serious illnesses. Specifically, work in the lab focuses on the development of novel swallowing and speech assessment and treatment methodologies that incorporate patient preferences, improve patient-provider communication, and allow patients’ values and preferences to be both known and included in the medical decision-making process.

Hands of two people on a table, one person grasps the other's hands in a supportive gesture

Active Grant

Improving shared decision-making surrounding dysphagia management for persons diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)

As many as 92% percent of persons diagnosed with ALS develop swallowing impairments over the course of the disease, which have negative prognostic effects on survival. As a result of these impairments, patients are faced with the decision of whether to have a feeding tube placed or not. The primary objective of the study is to develop and test a decision aid that improves communication and patient knowledge throughout the decision-making process.

Read About the Grant

Lab Team

Bridget Perry, PhD, CCC-SLP

Interim Chair, Communication Sciences and Disorders Associate Professor, Communication Sciences and Disorders Program Director, Clinical Doctorate in Speech Language Pathology Program Director, Swallowing & Communication Collaborative

Bridget Perry, PhD, CCC-SLP

slpd@mghihp.edu
(617) 643-0863
B39- 225

tabitha has short straight black hair and wears a cream and blue flowered top

Tabitha H. Kao, MS, CCC-SLP

PhD Student Swallowing and Communication Collaborative; Speech and Feeding Disorders Lab Doctoral Research Fellow

Tabitha H. Kao, MS, CCC-SLP

tkao@mghihp.edu

Rinki Varindani Desai, MS, CCC-SLP, BCS-S

Research Associate Swallowing and Communication Collaborative

Rinki Varindani Desai, MS, CCC-SLP, BCS-S

rvarindanidesai@mghihp.edu